Synthetic mammalian sulphamidase and genetic sequences encoding same

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates generally to mammalian sulphamidase and to genetic sequences encoding same and to the use of these in the investigation, diagnosis and treatment of subjects suspected of or suffering from sulphamidase deficiency.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to mammalian sulphamidase and to genetic sequences encoding same and to the use of these in the investigation, diagnosis and treatment of subjects suspected of or suffering from sulphamidase deficiency.

Bibliographic details of the publications referred to by author in this specification are collected at the end of the description. Sequence Identity Numbers (SEQ ID NOs.) for the nucleotide and amino acid sequences referred to in the specification are defined following the bibliography.

Throughout this specification, unless the context requires otherwise, the word "comprise", or variations such as "comprises" or "comprising", will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated element or integer or group of elements or integers but not the exclusion of any other element or integer or group of elements or integers.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

The increasing sophistication of recombinant DNA technology is greatly facilitating the efficacy of many commercially important industries including areas of medical and pharmaceutical research and development. The ability to purify native proteins and subsequently clone genetic sequences encoding these proteins is an important first step in the development of a range of therapeutic and diagnostic procedures. However, practitioners have faced many difficulties in purifying target molecules to an extent sufficient to determine amino acid sequences to permit the development of oligonucleotide probes to assist in the cloning of genetic sequences encoding the target molecules.

Such difficulties have been particularly faced in the research and development of lysosomal enzymes. An important lysosomal enzyme is sulphamidase (sulphamate sulphohydrolase EC 3.10.11). This enzyme acts as a exosulphatase in lysosomes to hydrolyse the sulphate ester bond in 2-sulphaminoglucosamine residues present in heparan sulphate and heparin (Hopwood, 1989). A deficiency in this lysosomal hydrolase is responsible for the pathogenesis of Sanfilippo A (Mucopolysaccharidosis type IIIA MPS-IIIA3!) syndrome (Kresse, 1973; Matalon and Dorfman, 1974). This is an autosomal recessive disorder of glycosaminoglycan catabolism leading to storage and excretion of excessive amounts of heparan sulphate and a variety of clinical phenotypes, but classically presenting with progressive mental retardation in conjunction with skeletal deformities (McKusick and Neufeld, 1983).

There is a need, therefore, to purify sulphamidase and to clone genetic sequences encoding same to permit development of a range of therapeutic and diagnostic procedures to assist in the diagnosis and treatment of disease conditions arising from sulphamidase deficiency.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

One aspect of the invention provides an isolated nucleic acid molecule comprising a sequence of nucleotides which encodes or is complementary to a sequence which encodes a mammalian sulphamidase or fragment or derivative thereof.

Another aspect of the invention is directed to an isolated nucleic acid molecule having a nucleotide sequence substantially as set forth in SEQ ID NO:1 or having at least 40% similarity to all or part thereof.

Yet another aspect of the present invention contemplates a recombinant mammalian sulphamidase or fragment or derivative thereof.

Still yet another aspect of the present invention provides a nucleic acid molecule comprising a sequence of nucleotides encoding or complementary to a sequence encoding a polypeptide capable of hydrolysing the sulphate ester bond in 2-sulphaminoglucosamine residues and wherein said nucleotide sequence is capable of hybridising under low stringency conditions to the nucleotide sequence set forth in FIG. 2 (SEQ ID NO:1).

Still another aspect of the present invention is directed to a polypeptide comprising a sequence of amino acids corresponding to the amino sequence set forth in FIG. 2 (SEQ ID NO:2) or having at least 40% similarity thereto, more preferably at least 60% similarity thereto and still more preferably at least 80% or 85-90% similarity thereto or encoded by the nucleotide sequence set forth in FIG. 2 (SEQ ID NO:1) or a nucleotide sequence capable of hybridising to SEQ ID NO:1 under low, preferably under medium and more preferably under high stringent conditions.

In still yet another aspect of the present invention there is contemplated a method for treating a patient suffering from sulphamidase deficiency said method comprising administering to said patient an effective amount of recombinant mammalian sulphamidase or an active fragment or derivative thereof.

Another aspect of the present invention is directed to a pharmaceutical composition comprising a recombinant mammalian sulphamidase or an active fragment or derivative thereof and one or more pharmaceutically acceptable carriers and/or diluents.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 is a photographic representation of sulphamidase purified from liver, kidney and placenta following SDS/PAGE. Lane 1: M_(r) standards (kDa); Lanes 2, 3 and 5: Purified sulphamidase from human liver, kidney and placenta, respectively; Lane 4: 16.

FIG. 2 is a representation of the nucleotide sequence and corresponding amino acid sequence in single letter code of human sulphamidase. * potential N-glycosylation site; ▾ probable site of signal peptide peptidase cleavage between amino acids 20 and 21.

The following single and three letter abbreviations are used for amino acid residues:

    ______________________________________                    Three-letter                              One-letter     Amino Acid     Abbreviation                              Symbol     ______________________________________     Alanine        Ala       A     Arginine       Arg       R     Asparagine     Asn       N     Aspartic acid  Asp       D     Cysteine       Cys       C     Glutamine      Gln       Q     Glutamic acid  Glu       E     Glycine        Gly       G     Histidine      His       H     Isoleucine     Ile       I     Leucine        Leu       L     Lysine         Lys       K     Methionine     Met       M     Phenylalanine  Phe       F     Proline        Pro       P     Serine         Ser       S     Threonine      Thr       T     Tryptophan     Trp       W     Tyrosine       Tyr       Y     Valine         Val       V     Any residue    Xaa       X     ______________________________________

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present invention provides an isolated nucleic acid molecule comprising a sequence of nucleotides which encodes, or are complementary to a sequence which encodes, a mammalian sulphamidase or fragment or derivative thereof or its like molecule.

Preferably, the mammal is a human, livestock animal, companion animal, wild animal or laboratory test animal (e.g. rabbit, rat, mouse or guinea pig). Most preferably, the mammal is a human. Conveniently, the sulphamidase is isolatable from the liver, kidney or placenta. However, the present invention extends to all mammalian sulphamidase enzymes and from any anatomical or cellular source and/or any biological fluid source, such as but not limited to plasma, serum, cell extract or lymph fluid.

Although a preferred embodiment of the present invention contemplates the use of human sulphamidase or genomic or recombinant (e.g. cDNA) genetic sequences encoding same in the investigation, diagnosis and/or treatment of human subjects (i.e. homologous system), one skilled in the art will appreciate that the enzyme or genetic sequences encoding same from a non-human animal may also be useful. Such a heterologous system is encompassed by the present invention.

The "nucleic acid molecule" of the present invention may be RNA or DNA (e.g. cDNA), single or double stranded and linear or covalently closed. The nucleic acid molecule may also be genomic DNA corresponding to the entire gene or a substantial portion thereof or to fragments and derivatives thereof. The nucleotide sequence may correspond to the naturally occurring nucleotide sequence or may contain single or multiple nucleotide substitutions, deletions and/or additions. All such modifications encode the sulphamidase-like molecules contemplated by the present invention. The length of the nucleotide sequence may vary from a few bases, such as in nucleic acid probes or primers, to a full length sequence.

The nucleic acid molecule of the present invention may constitute solely the nucleotide sequence encoding sulphamidase or like molecule or may be part of a larger nucleic acid molecule and extends to the genomic clone of sulphamidase. The non-sulphamidase encoding sequences in a larger nucleic acid molecule may include vector, promoter, terminator, enhancer, replication or signal sequences or non-coding regions of a genomic clone.

The present invention is particularly directed to the nucleic acid in cDNA form and particularly when inserted into an expression vector. The expression vector may be replicable in a eukaryotic or prokaryotic cell and may either produce mRNA or the mRNA may be subsequently translated into sulphamidase or like molecule. Particularly preferred eukaryotic cells include CHO cells but may be in any other suitable mammalian cells or cell lines or non-mammalian cells such as yeast or insect cells.

The present invention is further directed to synthetic sulphamidase or like molecule. The term "synthetic" includes recombinant forms and molecules produced by the sequential addition of amino acid residues, or groups of amino acid residues, in defined order. In a most preferred embodiment, the invention relates to recombinant sulphamidase or like molecule encoded by or expressed from the nucleic acid molecules as hereinbefore described.

The synthetic or recombinant sulphamidase may comprise an amino acid sequence corresponding to the naturally occurring amino acid sequence or may contain single or multiple amino acid substitutions, deletions and/or additions. The length of the amino acid sequence may range from a few residues to a full length molecule. Accordingly, this aspect of the present invention contemplates a proteinaceous molecule comprising an amino acid sequence corresponding to the full length mammalian sulphamidase enzyme or to a like molecule. The like molecule, therefore, comprises parts, derivatives and/or portions of the sulphamidase enzyme whether functional or not. Preferably, the mammal is human but may be of non-human origin as contemplated above.

Advantageously, the recombinant sulphamidase is a biologically pure preparation meaning that it has undergone some purification away for other proteins and/or non-proteinacous material. The purity of the preparation may be represented as at least 40% of the enzyme, preferably at least 60%, more preferably at least 75%, even more preferably at least 85% and still more preferably at least 95% relative to non-sulphamidase material as determined by weight, activity, amino acid homology or similarity, antibody reactivity or other convenient means.

Amino acid insertional derivatives of sulphamidase of the present invention include amino and/or carboxyl terminal fusions as well as intra-sequence insertions of single or multiple amino acids. Insertional amino acid sequence variants are those in which one or more amino acid residues are introduced into a predetermined site in the protein although random insertion is also possible with suitable screening of the resulting product. Deletional variants are characterised by the removal of one or more amino acids from the sequence. Substitutional amino acid variants are those in which at least one residue in the sequence has been removed and a different residue inserted in its place. Typical substitutions are those made in accordance with the following Table 1:

                  TABLE 1     ______________________________________     Suitable residues for amino acid substitutions     Original Residue  Exemplary Substitutions     ______________________________________     Ala               Ser     Arg               Lys     Asn               Gln; His     Asp               Glu     Cys               Ser     Gln               Asn     Glu               Asp     Gly               Pro     His               Asn; Gln     Ile               Leu; Val     Leu               Ile; Val     Lys               Arg; Gln; Glu     Met               Leu; Ile     Phe               Met; Leu; Tyr     Ser               Thr     Thr               Ser     Trp               Tyr     Tyr               Trp; Phe     Val               Ile; Leu     ______________________________________

Where the enzyme is dervatised by amino acid substitution, the amino acids are generally replaced by other amino acids having like properties such as hydrophobicity, hydrophilicity, electronegativity, bulky side chains and the like. Amino acid substitutions are typically of single residues. Amino acid insertions will usually be in the order of about 1-10 amino acid residues and deletions will range from about 1-20 residues. Preferably, deletions or insertions are made in adjacent pairs, i.e. a deletion of two residues or insertion of two residues.

The amino acid variants referred to above may readily be made using peptide synthetic techniques well known in the art, such as solid phase peptide synthesis (Merrifield synthesis) and the like, or by recombinant DNA manipulations. Techniques for making substitution mutations at predetermined sites in DNA having known or partially known sequence are well known and include, for example, M13 mutagenesis. The manipulation of DNA sequence to produce variant proteins which manifest as substitutional, insertional or deletional variants are conveniently elsewhere described such as Sambrook et al, 1989 Molecular Cloning: A Laboratory Manual Cold Spring Harbor Laboratories, Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y.

The derivatives or like molecules include single or multiple substitutions, deletions and/or additions of any component(s) naturally or artificially associated with the sulphamidase enzyme such as carbohydrate, lipid and/or other proteinaceous moieties. For example, the present invention extends to glycosylated and non-glycosylated forms of the molecule. All such molecules are encompassed by the expression "mutants", "derivatives", "fragments", "portions" and "like" molecules. These molecules may be active or non-active and may contain specific regions, such as a catalytic region. Particularly, preferred derivative molecules include those with altered glycosylation patterns relative to the naturally occurring molecule. Even more particularly, the recombinant molecule is more highly glycosylated than the naturally occurring molecule. Such higly glycosylated derivatives may have improved take-up properties and enhanced half-lives.

The present invention also extends to synthetic sulphamidase or like molecules when fused to other proteinaceous molecules. The latter may include another enzyme, reporter molecule, purification site or an amino acid sequence which facilitates transport of the molecule out of a cell, such as a signal sequence.

In a most preferred embodiment, the present invention has an amino acid or corresponding sulphamidase cDNA nucleotide sequence substantially as setforth in FIG. 2 having at least 40% similarity, preferably at least 60% similarity thereto or more preferably at least 80% or 85-90% similarity thereto.

In a related embodiment, the present invention provides a nucleic acid molecule comprising a sequence of nucleotides encoding or complementary to a sequence encoding a polypeptide capable of hydrolysing the sulphate ester bond in 2-sulphaminoglucosamine residues and wherein said nucleotide sequence is capable of hybridising under low stringency conditions to the nucleotide sequence set forth in FIG. 2 (SEQ ID NO:1). Preferably, hybridisation is possible under medium stringent conditions, more preferably, hybridisation is possible under high stringent conditions.

For the purposes of defining the level of stringency, reference can conveniently be made to Maniatis et al (1982) at pages 387-389 which is herein incorporated by reference where the washing steps disclosed are considered high stringency. A low stringency is defined herein as being in 4-6× SSC/0.1-0.5% w/v SDS at 37°-45° C. for 2-3 hours. Depending on the source and concentration of nucleic acid involved in the hybridisation, alternative conditions of stringency may be employed such as medium stringent conditions which are considered herein to be 1-4× SSC/0.25-0.5% w/v SDS at ≧45° C. for 2-3 hours or high stringent conditions considered herein to be 0.1-1× SSC/0.1% w/v SDS at 60° C. for 1-3 hours.

In a further related embodiment, the present invention contemplates a polypeptide comprising a sequence of amino acids corresponding to the amino sequence set forth in FIG. 2 (SEQ ID NO:2) or having at least 40% similarity thereto, more preferably at least 60% similarity thereto and still more preferably at least 80% or 85-90% similarity thereof or encoded by the nucleotide sequence set forth in FIG. 2 (SEQ ID NO:1) or a nucleotide sequence capable of hybridising to SEQ ID NO:1 under low, preferably under medium and more preferably under high stringent conditions.

The present invention extends to post-translational modifications to the sulphamidase enzyme. The modifications may be made to the naturally occurring enzyme or following synthesis by recombinant techniques. The modifications may be at the structural level or at, for example, the electrochemical level such as modifying net charge or structural conformation of the enzyme.

Such modification may be important to facilitate entry or penetration of the enzyme into selected tissues such as cartilage or blood brain barriers or to increase circulation half-life.

Such chemically or electrochemically modified ICAM-1-like peptides are referred to herein as "analogues" and are included with the term "derivatives".

Analogues of sulphamidase contemplated herein include, but are not limited to, modifications to side chains, incorporation of unnatural amino acids and/or their derivatives during peptide synthesis and the use of crosslinkers and other methods which impose conformational constraints on the enzyme.

Examples of side chain modifications contemplated by the present invention include modifications of amino groups such as by reductive alkylation by reaction with an aldehyde followed by reduction with NaBH₄ ; amidination with methylacetimidate; acylation with acetic anhydride; carbamoylation of amino groups with cyanate; trinitrobenzylation of amino groups with 2,4,6-trinitrobenzene sulphonic acid (TNBS); acylation of amino groups with succinic anhydride and tetrahydrophthalic anhydride; and pyridoxylation of lysine with pyridoxal-5'-phosphate followed by reduction with NaBH₄.

The guanidino group of arginine residues may be modified by the formation of heterocyclic condensation products with reagents such as 2,3-butanedione, phenylglyoxal and glyoxal.

The carboxyl group may be modified by carbodiimide activation via O-acylisourea formation followed by subsequent derivatisation, for example, to a corresponding amide.

Sulphydryl groups may be modified by methods such as carboxymethylation with iodoacetic acid or iodoacetamide; performic acid oxidation to cysteic acid; formation of a mixed disulphides with other thiol compounds; reaction with maleimide, maleic anhydride or other substituted maleimide; formation of mercurial derivatives using 4-chloromercuribenzoate, 4-chloromercuriphenylsulphonic acid, phenylmercury chloride, 2-chloromercuric-4-nitrophenol and other mercurials; carbamoylation with cyanate at alkaline pH.

Tryptophan residues may be modified by, for example, oxidation with N-bromosuccinimide or alkylation of the indole ring with 2-hydroxy-5-nitrobenzyl bromide or sulphenyl halides. Tyrosine residues on the other hand, may be altered by nitration with tetranitromethane to form a 3-nitrotyrosine derivative.

Modification of the imidazole ring of a histidine residue may be accomplished by alkylation with iodoacetic acid derivatives or N-carbethoxylation with diethylpyrocarbonate.

Examples of incorporating unnatural amino acids and derivatives during peptide synthesis include, but are not limited to, use of norleucine, 4-amino butyric acid, 4-amino-3-hydroxy-5-phenylpentanoic acid, 6-aminohexanoic acid, t-butylglycine, norvaline, phenylglycine, ornithine, sarcosine, 4-amino-3-hydroxy-6-methylheptanoic acid, 2-thienyl alanine and/or D-isomers of amino acids.

Crosslinkers can be used, for example, to stabilise 3D conformations, using homo-bifunctional crosslinkers such as the bifunctional imido esters having (CH₂)_(n) spacer groups with n=1 to n=6, glutaraldehyde, N-hydroxysuccinimide esters and hetero-bifunctional reagents which usually contain an amino-reactive moiety such as N-hydroxysuccinimide and another group specific-reactive moiety such as maleimido or dithio moiety (SH) or carbodiimide (COOH). In addition, the enzyme could be conformationally constrained by, for example, incorporation of C.sub.α and N.sub.α -methylamino acids, introduction of double bonds between C.sub.α and C.sub.β atoms of amino acids and the formation of cyclic peptides or analogues by introducing covalent bonds such as forming an amide bond between the N and C termini, between two side chains or between a side chain and the N or C terminus.

Electrochemical modifications of sulphamidase include interaction with polylysine or polyethylene glycol or other agent which effects an overall change to the net charge of the enzyme.

The present invention further contemplates antibodies to sulphamidase and preferably synthetic sulphamidase or like molecule. The antibodies may be polyclonal or monoclonal, naturally occurring or synthetic (including recombinant, fragment or fusion forms). Such antibodies will be useful in developing immunoassays for sulphamidase.

A further aspect of the present invention contemplates a method of screening for abberations in the sulphamidase gene. Such a method may be accomplished in a number of ways including isolating a source of DNA to be tested or mRNA therefrom and hybridising thereto a nucleic acid molecule as hereinbefore described. Generally, the nucleic acid is probe or primer size and polymerase chain reaction is a convenient means by which to analyse the RNA or DNA. Other suitable assays include the ligation chain reaction and the strand displacement amplification methods. The sulphamidase sequence can also be determined and compared to the naturally occurring sequence. Such methods may be useful in adults and children and may be adapted for a pre-natal test. The DNA to be tested includes a genomic sample carrying the sulphamidase gene, a cDNA clone and/or amplification product.

In accordance with this aspect of the present invention there is provided a method for screening for abberations in the sulphamidase gene including the absence of such a gene or a portion or a substantial portion thereof comprising isolating a sample of DNA or mRNA corresponding to a region of said DNA and contacting same with an oligonucleotide probe capable of hybridising to one or more complementary sequences within the sulphamidase gene and then detecting the hybridisation, the extent of hybridisation or the absence of hybridisation. Alternatively, the probe is a primer and capable of directing amplification of one or more regions of said sulphamidase gene and the amplification products and/or profile of amplification products is compared to an individual carrying the full gene or to a reference date base. Conveniently, the amplification products are sequenced to determine the presence or absence of the full gene.

The present invention further extends to a method of treating patients suffering from sulphamidase deficiency, such as in MPS-IIIA, said method comprising administering to said patient an effective amount of sulphamidase or active like form thereof. Preferably, the sulphamidase is in recombinant form. Such a method is referred to as "enzyme therapy". Alternatively, gene therapy can be employed including introducing an active gene (i.e. a nucleic acid molecule as hereinbefore described) or to parts of the gene or other sequences which facilitate expression of a naturally occurring sulphamidase gene.

Administration of the sulphamidase for enzyme therapy may be by oral, intravenous, suppository, intraperitoneal, intramuscular, intranasal, intradermal or subcutaneous administration or by infusion or implantation. The sulphamidase is preferably as hereinbefore described including active mutants or derivatives thereof and glycosylation variants thereof. Administration may also be by way of gene therapy including expression of the gene by inclusion of the gene in viral vectors which are introduced into the animal (e.g. human) host to be treated. Alternatively, the gene may be expressed in a bacterial host which is then introduced and becomes part of the bacterial flora in the animal to be tested.

Still yet another aspect of the present invention is directed to a pharmaceutical composition comprising synthetic (e.g. recombinant) sulphamidase or like molecule, including active derivatives and fragments thereof, alone or in combination with other active molecules. Such other molecules may act synergistically with the enzyme or facilitates its entry to a target cell. The composition will also contain one or more pharmaceutically acceptable carriers and/or diluents. The composition may alternatively comprise a genetic component useful in gene therapy.

The active ingredients of the pharmaceutical composition comprising the synthetic or recombinant sulphamidase or mutants or fragments or derivatives thereof are contemplated to exhibit excellent activity in treating patients with a deficiency in the enzyme when administered in an amount which depends on the particular case. The variation depends, for example, on the patient and the sulphamidase used. For example, from about 0.5 ug to about 20 mg of enzyme per animal body or, depending on the animal and other factors, per kilogram of body weight may be administered. Dosage regima may be adjusted to provide the optimum therapeutic response. For example, several divided doses may be administered daily, weekly, monthly or in other suitable time intervals or the dose may be proportionally reduced as indicated by the exigencies of the situation. Accordingly, alternative dosages in the order of 1.0 μg to 15 mg, 2.0 μg to 10 mg or 10 μg to 5 mg may be administered in a single or as part of multiple doses. The active compound may be administered in a convenient manner such as by the oral, intravenous (where water soluble), intramuscular, subcutaneous, intranasal, intradermal or suppository routes or implanting (eg using slow release molecules). Depending on the route of administration, the active ingredients which comprise a synthetic (e.g. recombinant) sulphamidase or fragments, derivatives or mutants thereof may be required to be coated in a material to protect same from the action of enzymes, acids and other natural conditions which may inactivate said ingredients. For example, the low lipophilicity of sulphamidase will allow it to be destroyed in the gastrointestinal tract by enzymes capable of cleaving peptide bonds and in the stomach by acid hydrolysis. In order to administer the vaccine by other than parenteral administration, the enzyme will be coated by, or administered with, a material to prevent its inactivation. For example, the enzyme may be administered in an adjuvant, co-administered with enzyme inhibitors or in liposomes. Adjuvant is used in its broadest sense and includes any immune stimulating compound such as interferon. Adjuvants contemplated herein include resorcinols, non-ionic surfactants such as polyoxyethylene oleyl ether and n-hexadecyl polyethylene ether. Conveniently, the adjuvant is Freund's Complete or Incomplete Adjuvant. Enzyme inhibitors include pancreatic trypsin inhibitor, diisopropylfluorophosphate (DEP) and trasylol. Liposomes include water-in-oil-in-water emulsions as well as conventional liposomes.

The active compound may also be administered in dispersions prepared in glycerol, liquid polyethylene glycols, and/or mixtures thereof and in oils. Under ordinary conditions of storage and use, these preparations contain a preservative to prevent the growth of microorganisms.

The pharmaceutical forms suitable for injectable use include sterile aqueous solutions (where water soluble) or dispersions and sterile powders for the extemporaneous preparation of sterile injectable solutions or dispersion. In all cases the form must be sterile and must be fluid to the extent that easy syringability exists. It must be stable under the conditions of manufacture and storage and must be preserved against the contaminating action of microorganisms such as bacteria and fungi. The carrier can be a solvent or dispersion medium containing, for example, water, ethanol, polyol (for example, glycerol, propylene glycol, and liquid polyethylene glycol, and the like), suitable mixtures thereof, and vegetable oils. The proper fluidity can be maintained, for example, by the use of a coating such as lecithin, by the maintenance of the required particle size in the case of dispersion and by the use of superfactants. The prevention of the action of microorganisms can be brought about by various antibacterial and antifungal agents, for example, parabens, chlorobutanol, phenol, sorbic acid, thirmerosal, and the like. In many cases, it will be preferable to include isotonic agents, for example, sugars or sodium chloride. Prolonged absorption of the injectable compositions can be brought about by the use in the compositions of agents delaying absorption, for example, aluminum monostearate and gelatin.

Sterile injectable solutions are prepared by incorporating the active compound in the required amount in the appropriate solvent with various of the other ingredients enumerated above, as required, followed by filtered sterilization. Generally, dispersions are prepared by incorporating the various sterilized active ingredient(s) into a sterile vehicle which contains the basic dispersion medium and the required other ingredients from those enumerated above. In the case of sterile powders for the preparation of sterile injectable solutions, the preferred methods of preparation are vacuum drying and the freeze-drying technique which yield a powder of the active ingredient plus any additional desired ingredient from previously sterile-filtered solution thereof.

When the sulphamidase of the present invention is suitably protected as described above, the composition may be orally administered, for example, with an inert diluent or with an assimilable edible carrier, or it may be enclosed in hard or soft shell gelatin capsule, or it may be compressed into tablets, or it may be incorporated directly with the food of the diet. For oral therapeutic administration, the active compound may be incorporated with excipients and used in the form of ingestible tablets, buccal tablets, troches, capsules, elixirs, suspensions, syrups, wafers, and the like. Such compositions and preparations should contain at least 1% by weight of active compound. The percentage of the compositions and preparations may, of course, be varied and may conveniently be between about 5 to about 80% of the weight of the unit. The amount of active compound in the vaccine compositions is such that a suitable dosage will be obtained. Preferred compositions or preparations according to the present invention are prepared, so that an oral dosage unit form contains between about 0.5 ug and 20 mg of active compound.

The tablets, troches, pills, capsules and the like may also contain the following: a binder such as gum gragacanth, acacia, corn starch or gelatin; excipients such as dicalcium phosphate; a disintegrating agent such as corn starch, potato starch, alginic acid and the like; a lubricant such as magnesium stearate; and a sweetening agent such a sucrose, lactose or saccharin may be added or a flavoring agent such as peppermint, oil of wintergreen, or cherry flavouring. When the dosage unit form is a capsule, it may contain, in addition to materials of the above type, a liquid carrier. Various other materials may be present as coatings or to otherwise modify the physical form of the dosage unit. For instance, tablets, pills, or capsules may be coated with shellac, sugar or both. A syrup or elixir may contain the active compound, sucrose as a sweetening agent, methyl and propylparabens as preservatives, a dye and flavoring such as cherry or orange flavor. Of course, any material used in preparing any dosage unit form should be pharmaceutically pure and substantially non-toxic in the amounts employed. In addition, the active compound may be incorporated into sustained-release reparations and formulations.

As used herein "pharmaceutically acceptable carriers and/or diluents" include any and all solvents, dispersion media, aqueous solutions, coatings, antibacterial and antifungal agents, isotonic and absorption delaying agents, and the like. The use of such media and agents for pharmaceutical active substances is well known in the art. Except insofar as any conventional media or agent is incompatible with the active ingredient, use thereof in the pharmaceutical compositions is contemplated. Supplementary active ingredients can also be incorporated into the compositions.

The present invention further relates to the use of sulphamidase or active fragment, mutant or derivative thereof in the manufacture of a medicament for the treatment of patients suffering from a deficiency in the naturally occurring enzyme (e.g. MPS-IIIA).

The present invention is further described with reference to the following non-limiting examples.

EXAMPLE 1 Purification of Sulphamidase

Sulphamidases were purified according to the method described in Freeman and Hopwood (1986). Enzymes were purified to homogenicity from human liver, kidney and placenta. Evidence of purity is shown following SDS/PAGE which is represented in FIG. 1. All samples were reduced with dithiothreitol prior to electrophoresis.

EXAMPLE 2 Characterisation of Sulphamidase

Results presented in FIG. 1 show a subunit of about M_(r) 56,000 from sulphamidase purified from human liver, kidney and placenta. The native M_(r) is about 100,000 to 120,000.

EXAMPLE 3 N-Terminal Amino Acid Sequence Determination

The N-terminal amino acid sequence was determined using the methods of Clements et al (1989) and Wilson et al (1990).

The amino acid sequence is shown in Table 2.

EXAMPLE 4 Cloning of Sulphamidase cDNA

The N-terminal amino acid sequence (Example 3) was used to generate oligonucleotides and primers to screen a human kidney cDNA library. An approximately 2.7 kbp cDNA clone was then isolated encoding the entire sequence of human sulphamidase. The nucleotide sequence (SEQ ID NO:1) and corresponding amino acid sequence (SEQ ID NO:2) are shown in FIG. 2.

The amino acid sequence is shown in single letter code above the cDNA sequence. Nucleotide and amino acid numbers are in the right margin. The probable site of signal peptide peptidase cleavage between amino acids 20 and 21 is shown by an arrow. Amino acids colinear with the amino-terminal peptide data is underlined. The five potential N-glycosylation sites are asterisked above the peptide sequence. The open reading frame is 1506 nucleotides long and encodes a 502 amino acid protein. The predicted molecular mass of the mature protein (minus the 20 amino acid signal peptide) is about 54,679 kilo daltons.

                  TABLE 2     ______________________________________     N-Terminal amino acid sequence (SEQ ID NO:3) determined from     purified human liver sulphamidase     ______________________________________     R P R N A L L L L A D D G G F E S G A Y X.sup.1 N S A I     ______________________________________      X.sup.1 no residue could be identified for this position, indicating that      this residue could be phosphorylated or glycosylated. It is likely to be      Nglycosylated because it would be a consensus sequence  N × T(s)!      for Nglycosylation.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the invention described herein is susceptible to variations and modifications other than those specifically described. It is to be understood that the invention includes all such variations and modifications. The invention also includes all of the steps, features, compositions and compounds referred to or indicated in this specification, individually or collectively, and any and all combinations of any two or more of said steps or features.

REFERENCES

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Freeman C. and Hopwood J. J., (1986) Biochem J. 234: 83-92.

Hopwood J. J. (1989) In: "Heparin: Chemical and Biological Properties, Clinical Applications" (Lane D. W. and Lindahl U., eds.), 190-229, Edward Arnold, London.

Kresse H. (1973) Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 54: 1111-1118.

Matalon R. and Dorfman A. (1974) J. Clin. Invest. 54: 907-912.

McKusick V. and Neufeld E. (1983) In: "The Metabolic Basis of Inherited Disease" (Stanbury J. B., Wyngaarden J. B., Fredrickson D. S., Goldstein J. L. and Brown M. S., eds), 5th Ed., 751-771, McGraw-Hill, New York.

Wilson P. J., Morris C. P., Anson D. S., Occhiodoro T., Bielicki J., Clements P. R. and Hopwood J. J. (1990) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 87: 8531-8535.

    __________________________________________________________________________     SEQUENCE LISTING     (1) GENERAL INFORMATION:     (iii) NUMBER OF SEQUENCES: 3     (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:1:     (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS:     (A) LENGTH: 2657 base pairs     (B) TYPE: nucleic acid     (C) STRANDEDNESS: single     (D) TOPOLOGY: linear     (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: DNA     (ix) FEATURE:     (A) NAME/KEY: CDS     (B) LOCATION: 13..1518     (xi) SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:1:     GAATTCCGGGCCATGAGCTGCCCCGTGCCCGCCTGCTGCGCGCTGCTG48     MetSerCysProValProAlaCysCysAlaLeuLeu     1510     CTAGTCCTGGGGCTCTGCCGGGCGCGTCCCCGGAACGCACTGCTGCTC96     LeuValLeuGlyLeuCysArgAlaArgProArgAsnAlaLeuLeuLeu     152025     CTCGCGGATGACGGAGGCTTTGAGAGTGGCGCGTACAACAACAGCGCC144     LeuAlaAspAspGlyGlyPheGluSerGlyAlaTyrAsnAsnSerAla     303540     ATCGCCACCCCGCACCTGGACGCCTTGGCCCGCCGCAGCCTCCTCTTT192     IleAlaThrProHisLeuAspAlaLeuAlaArgArgSerLeuLeuPhe     45505560     CGCAATGCCTTCACCTCGGTCAGCAGCTGCTCTCCCAGCCGCGCCAGC240     ArgAsnAlaPheThrSerValSerSerCysSerProSerArgAlaSer     657075     CTCCTCACTGGCCTGCCCCAGCATCAGAATGGGATGTACGGGCTGCAC288     LeuLeuThrGlyLeuProGlnHisGlnAsnGlyMetTyrGlyLeuHis     808590     CAGGACGTGCACCACTTCAACTCCTTCGACAAGGTGCGGAGCCTGCCG336     GlnAspValHisHisPheAsnSerPheAspLysValArgSerLeuPro     95100105     CTGCTGCTCAGCCAAGCTGGTGTGCGCACAGGCATCATCGGGAAGAAG384     LeuLeuLeuSerGlnAlaGlyValArgThrGlyIleIleGlyLysLys     110115120     CACGTGGGGCCGGAGACCGTGTACCCGTTTGACTTTGCGTACACGGAG432     HisValGlyProGluThrValTyrProPheAspPheAlaTyrThrGlu     125130135140     GAGAATGGCTCCGTCCTCCAGGTGGGGCGGAACATCACTAGAATTAAG480     GluAsnGlySerValLeuGlnValGlyArgAsnIleThrArgIleLys     145150155     CTGCTCGTCCGGAAATTCCTGCAGACTCAGGATGACCGGCCTTTCTTC528     LeuLeuValArgLysPheLeuGlnThrGlnAspAspArgProPhePhe     160165170     CTCTACGTCGCCTTCCACGACCCCCACCGCTGTGGGCACTCCCAGCCC576     LeuTyrValAlaPheHisAspProHisArgCysGlyHisSerGlnPro     175180185     CAGTACGGAACCTTCTGTGAGAAGTTTGGCAACGGAGAGAGCGGCATG624     GlnTyrGlyThrPheCysGluLysPheGlyAsnGlyGluSerGlyMet     190195200     GGTCGTATCCCAGACTGGACCCCCCAGGCCTACGACCCACTGGACGTG672     GlyArgIleProAspTrpThrProGlnAlaTyrAspProLeuAspVal     205210215220     CTGGTGCCTTACTTCGTCCCCAACACCCCGGCAGCCCGAGCCGACCTG720     LeuValProTyrPheValProAsnThrProAlaAlaArgAlaAspLeu     225230235     GCCGCTCAGTACACCACCGTCGGCCGCATGGACCAAGGAGTTGGACTG768     AlaAlaGlnTyrThrThrValGlyArgMetAspGlnGlyValGlyLeu     240245250     GTGCTCCAGGAGCTGCGTGACGCCGGTGTCCTGAACGACACACTGGTG816     ValLeuGlnGluLeuArgAspAlaGlyValLeuAsnAspThrLeuVal     255260265     ATCTTCACGTCCGACAACGGGATCCCCTTCCCCAGCGGCAGGACCAAC864     IlePheThrSerAspAsnGlyIleProPheProSerGlyArgThrAsn     270275280     CTGTACTGGCCGGGCACTGCTGAACCCTTACTGGTGTCATCCCCGGAG912     LeuTyrTrpProGlyThrAlaGluProLeuLeuValSerSerProGlu     285290295300     CACCCAAAACGCTGGGGCCAAGTCAGCGAGGCCTACGTGAGCCTCCTA960     HisProLysArgTrpGlyGlnValSerGluAlaTyrValSerLeuLeu     305310315     GACCTCACGCCCACCATCTTGGATTGGTTCTCGATCCCGTACCCCAGC1008     AspLeuThrProThrIleLeuAspTrpPheSerIleProTyrProSer     320325330     TACGCCATCTTTGGCTCGAAGACCATCCACCTCACTGGCCGGTCCCTC1056     TyrAlaIlePheGlySerLysThrIleHisLeuThrGlyArgSerLeu     335340345     CTGCCGGCGCTGGAGGCCGAGCCCCTCTGGGCCACCGTCTTTGGCAGC1104     LeuProAlaLeuGluAlaGluProLeuTrpAlaThrValPheGlySer     350355360     CAGAGCCACCACGAGGTCACCATGTCCTACCCCATGCGCTCCGTGCAG1152     GlnSerHisHisGluValThrMetSerTyrProMetArgSerValGln     365370375380     CACCGGCACTTCCGCCTCGTGCACAACCTCAACTTCAAGATGCCCTTT1200     HisArgHisPheArgLeuValHisAsnLeuAsnPheLysMetProPhe     385390395     CCCATCGACCAGGACTTCTACGTCTCACCCACCTTCCAGGACCTCCTG1248     ProIleAspGlnAspPheTyrValSerProThrPheGlnAspLeuLeu     400405410     AACCGCACCACAGCTGGTCAGCCCACGGGCTGGTACAAGGACCTCCGT1296     AsnArgThrThrAlaGlyGlnProThrGlyTrpTyrLysAspLeuArg     415420425     CATTACTACTACCGGGCGCGCTGGGAGCTCTACGACCGGAGCCGGGAC1344     HisTyrTyrTyrArgAlaArgTrpGluLeuTyrAspArgSerArgAsp     430435440     CCCCACGAGACCCAGAACCTGGCCACCGACCCGCGCTTTGCTCAGCTT1392     ProHisGluThrGlnAsnLeuAlaThrAspProArgPheAlaGlnLeu     445450455460     CTGGAGATGCTTCGGGACCAGCTGGCCAAGTGGCAGTGGGAGACCCAC1440     LeuGluMetLeuArgAspGlnLeuAlaLysTrpGlnTrpGluThrHis     465470475     GACCCCTGGGTGTGCGCCCCCGACGGCGTCCTGGAGGAGAAGCTCTCT1488     AspProTrpValCysAlaProAspGlyValLeuGluGluLysLeuSer     480485490     CCCCAGTGCCAGCCCCTCCACAATGAGCTGTGACCATCCCAGGAGGCCTG1538     ProGlnCysGlnProLeuHisAsnGluLeu     495500     TGCACACATCCCAGGCATGTCCCAGACACATCCCACACGTGTCCGTGTGGCCGGCCAGCC1598     TGGGGAGTAGTGGCAACAGCCCTTCCGTCCACACTCCCATCCAAGGAGGGTTCTTCCTTC1658     CTGTGGGGTCACTCTTGCCATTGCCTGGAGGGGGACCAGAGCATGTGACCAGAGCATGTG1718     CCCAGCCCCTCCACCACCAGGGGCACTGCCGTCATGGCAGGGGACACAGTTGTCCTTGTG1778     TCTGAACCATGTCCCAGCACGGGAATTCTAGACATACGTGGTCTGCGGACAGGGCAGCGC1838     CCCCAGCCCATGACAAGGGAGTCTTGTTTTCTGGCTTGGTTTGGGGACCTGCAAATGGGA1898     GGCCTGAGGCCCTCTTCAGGCTTTGGCAGCCACAGATACTTCTGAACCCTTCACAGAGAG1958     CAGGCAGGGGCTTCGGTGCCGCGTGGGCAGTACGCAGGTCCCACCGACACTCACCTGGGA2018     GCACGGCGCCTGGCTCTTACCAGCGTCTGGCCTAGAGGAAGCCTTTGAGCGACCTTTGGG2078     CAGGTTTCTGCTTCTTCTGTTTTGCCCATGGTCAAGTCCCTGTTCCCCAGGCAGGTTTCA2138     GCTGATTGGCAGCAGGCTCCCTGAGTGATGAGCTTGAACCTGTGGTGTTTCTGGGCAGAA2198     GCTTATCTTTTTTGAGAGTGTCCGAAGATGAAGGCATGGCGATGCCCGTCCTCTGGCTTG2258     GGTTAATTCTTCGGTGACACTGGCATTGCTGGGTGGTGATGCCCGTCCTCTGGCTTGGGT2318     TAATTCTTCGGTGACACTGGCGTTGCTGGGTGGCAATGCCCGTCCTCTGGCTTGGGTTAA2378     TTCTTCGGTGACACTGGCGTTGCTGGGTGGCGATGCCCGTCCTCTGGCTTGGGTTAATTC2438     TTGGATGACGTCGGCGTTGCTGGGAGAATGTGCCGTTCCTGCCCTGCCTCCACCCACCTC2498     GGGAGCAGAAGCCCGGCCTGGACACCCCTCGGCCTGGACACCCCTCGAAGGAGAGGGCGC2558     TTCCTTGAGTAGGTGGGCTCCCCTTGCCCTTCCCTCCCTATCACTCCATACTGGGGTGGG2618     CTGGAGGAGGCCACAGGCCAGCTATTGTAAAAGCTTTTT2657     (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:2:     (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS:     (A) LENGTH: 502 amino acids     (B) TYPE: amino acid     (D) TOPOLOGY: linear     (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: protein     (xi) SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:2:     MetSerCysProValProAlaCysCysAlaLeuLeuLeuValLeuGly     151015     LeuCysArgAlaArgProArgAsnAlaLeuLeuLeuLeuAlaAspAsp     202530     GlyGlyPheGluSerGlyAlaTyrAsnAsnSerAlaIleAlaThrPro     354045     HisLeuAspAlaLeuAlaArgArgSerLeuLeuPheArgAsnAlaPhe     505560     ThrSerValSerSerCysSerProSerArgAlaSerLeuLeuThrGly     65707580     LeuProGlnHisGlnAsnGlyMetTyrGlyLeuHisGlnAspValHis     859095     HisPheAsnSerPheAspLysValArgSerLeuProLeuLeuLeuSer     100105110     GlnAlaGlyValArgThrGlyIleIleGlyLysLysHisValGlyPro     115120125     GluThrValTyrProPheAspPheAlaTyrThrGluGluAsnGlySer     130135140     ValLeuGlnValGlyArgAsnIleThrArgIleLysLeuLeuValArg     145150155160     LysPheLeuGlnThrGlnAspAspArgProPhePheLeuTyrValAla     165170175     PheHisAspProHisArgCysGlyHisSerGlnProGlnTyrGlyThr     180185190     PheCysGluLysPheGlyAsnGlyGluSerGlyMetGlyArgIlePro     195200205     AspTrpThrProGlnAlaTyrAspProLeuAspValLeuValProTyr     210215220     PheValProAsnThrProAlaAlaArgAlaAspLeuAlaAlaGlnTyr     225230235240     ThrThrValGlyArgMetAspGlnGlyValGlyLeuValLeuGlnGlu     245250255     LeuArgAspAlaGlyValLeuAsnAspThrLeuValIlePheThrSer     260265270     AspAsnGlyIleProPheProSerGlyArgThrAsnLeuTyrTrpPro     275280285     GlyThrAlaGluProLeuLeuValSerSerProGluHisProLysArg     290295300     TrpGlyGlnValSerGluAlaTyrValSerLeuLeuAspLeuThrPro     305310315320     ThrIleLeuAspTrpPheSerIleProTyrProSerTyrAlaIlePhe     325330335     GlySerLysThrIleHisLeuThrGlyArgSerLeuLeuProAlaLeu     340345350     GluAlaGluProLeuTrpAlaThrValPheGlySerGlnSerHisHis     355360365     GluValThrMetSerTyrProMetArgSerValGlnHisArgHisPhe     370375380     ArgLeuValHisAsnLeuAsnPheLysMetProPheProIleAspGln     385390395400     AspPheTyrValSerProThrPheGlnAspLeuLeuAsnArgThrThr     405410415     AlaGlyGlnProThrGlyTrpTyrLysAspLeuArgHisTyrTyrTyr     420425430     ArgAlaArgTrpGluLeuTyrAspArgSerArgAspProHisGluThr     435440445     GlnAsnLeuAlaThrAspProArgPheAlaGlnLeuLeuGluMetLeu     450455460     ArgAspGlnLeuAlaLysTrpGlnTrpGluThrHisAspProTrpVal     465470475480     CysAlaProAspGlyValLeuGluGluLysLeuSerProGlnCysGln     485490495     ProLeuHisAsnGluLeu     500     (2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:3:     (i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS:     (A) LENGTH: 25 amino acids     (B) TYPE: amino acid     (C) STRANDEDNESS: single     (D) TOPOLOGY: linear     (ii) MOLECULE TYPE: peptide     (xi) SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:3:     ArgProArgAsnAlaLeuLeuLeuLeuAlaAspAspGlyGlyPheGlu     151015     SerGlyAlaTyrXaaAsnSerAlaIle     2025     __________________________________________________________________________ 

We claim:
 1. An isolated nucleic acid molecule comprising a sequence of nucleotides which encodes or is complementary to a sequence which encodes a human sulphamidase wherein said sequence of nucleotides comprises SEQ ID NO:1.
 2. The isolated nucleic acid molecule according to claim 1 wherein the nucleotides are deoxyribonucleotides.
 3. The isolated nucleic acid molecule according to claim 2 wherein said molecule is cDNA.
 4. The isolated nucleic acid molecule according to claim 2 wherein said molecule is a genomic DNA molecule.
 5. The isolated nucleic acid according to claim 1 wherein the sulphamidase is of liver, kidney or placenta origin.
 6. The isolated nucleic acid molecule according to claim 1 wherein said molecule is carried by a vector capable of replication in a eukaryotic cell or a prokaryotic cell.
 7. The isolated nucleic acid molecule according to claim 6 wherein the vector is an expression vector.
 8. A method of expressing a recombinant human sulphamidase in a eukaryotic cell comprising introducing the isolated nucleic acid molecule according to claim 7 into said cell and incubating said cell under conditions sufficient for expression to occur.
 9. The method according to claim 8 wherein the eukaryotic cell is a mammalian cell.
 10. A nucleic acid molecule derived from humans comprising a sequence of nucleotides encoding or complementary to a sequence encoding a polypeptide which hydrolyzes the sulphate ester bond in 2-sulphaminoglucosamine residues and wherein said nucleotide sequence hybridizes under high stringency conditions to the nucleotide sequence set forth in FIG. 2 (SEQ ID NO.1).
 11. An isolated nucleic acid molecule having a nucleotide sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO.1 which encodes human sulphamidase.
 12. A replicable expression vector comprising an isolated nucleic acid molecule having a nucleotide sequence as set forth in SEQ ID NO.1.
 13. An isolated nucleic acid molecule comprising a sequence of nucleotides which encodes or is complementary to a sequence which encodes a human sulphamidase wherein said sequence of nucleotides hybridizes under high stringency conditions to the nucleotide sequence set forth in FIG. 2 (SEQ ID NO:1). 